Percussive massage, which is also referred to as tapotement, is the rapid, percussive tapping, slapping and cupping of an area of the human body. Percussive massage is used to more aggressively work and strengthen deep-tissue muscles. Percussive massage increases local blood circulation and can even help tone muscle areas. Percussive massage may be applied by a skilled massage therapist using rapid hand movements; however, the manual force applied to the body varies, and the massage therapist may tire before completing a sufficient treatment regime.
Percussive massage may also be applied by electromechanical percussive massage devices (percussive applicators), which are commercially available. Such percussive applicators may include, for example, an electric motor coupled to drive a reciprocating piston within a cylinder. A variety of percussive heads may be attached to the piston to provide different percussive effects on selected areas of the body. Many of the known percussive applicators are expensive, large, relatively heavy, and tethered to an electrical power source. For example, some percussive applicators may require users to grip the applicators with both hands in order to control the applicators. Some percussive applicators are relatively noisy because of the conventional mechanisms used to convert the rotational energy of an electric motor to the reciprocating motion of the piston.
When a percussive massage device is applied to a body of a human, the efficacy of the therapy provided by the percussive massage device depends in part on the pressure applied to the body. For certain persons, a lower pressure provides a relaxing massage and a higher pressure may be uncomfortable. For other persons, a higher pressure is required to provide relief from sore muscles and other tissues. For many persons, the pressure needs to be varied from location to location on their bodies. Presently available percussive massage devices do not provide a way to determine the pressure applied to a body. Thus, achievement of a correct pressure for a particular location on the body of a specific person relies on the skill and the memory of the massage therapist applying a percussive massager. Even with the same percussive massage equipment, the same therapist is not likely to provide the appropriate pressures during two successive treatment.